


Signs

by merelypassingtime



Category: Doctor Strange (2016), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Deaf Character, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Original Character(s), Sign Language, not affiliated with the movie of the same name
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-23
Updated: 2019-11-23
Packaged: 2021-02-26 17:07:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21531838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/merelypassingtime/pseuds/merelypassingtime
Summary: In the aftermath of a battle, Stephen and Tony help a little girl with a hearing impairment.
Relationships: Tony Stark/Stephen Strange
Comments: 16
Kudos: 114





	Signs

**Author's Note:**

> Many thanks to Deaflikehawkeye for their invaluable feedback on this story!

There was a huge sonic boom, one that probably shattered every window in Manhattan and most of the ones in the Bronx, and the interdimensional creature dissipated in an explosion of multicolored lights making the sky into an aurora borealis of bright greens and pinks, and casting deep, flickering shadows over the rubble strewn street below.

Stephen sighed in relief. It was so convenient when they disappeared like this, no gooey residue and hard to explain bodies for the authorities to secret away and ‘study’. Not that he thought Shield would to do stupid things with the knowledge. 

Okay, so he completely knew they would do something stupid and most likely world threatening with any knowledge they gained, and he was happy to be able to skip getting rid of a building sized carcass to spare himself the hassle of cleaning up their mess later. 

Besides, looking down from where he was still suspended almost forty feet above the street he got his first good look at the damage the fight had caused and knew he already had enough of a mess to clean up right now. 

Everywhere there were abandoned cars, small fires, chunks the creature had managed to take out of several buildings, and people milling about, many dully watching the lights blazing above them. Surveying the scene with the calm detachment he’d learned during a triage rotation he’d done in med school, he tried to pick out anyone who needed help.

His attention was caught by a patch of colors shifting in time with the ones in the sky. Turning, he squinted through the smoky haze hanging over the street, and thought he recognized the red and gold figure next to it as Tony. He leaned forward starting the Cloak of Levitation on a rapid glide in that direction just in case some part of the creature had escaped and now was fighting Tony.

As they approached, the shapes became more clear. It was indeed Tony, still in his Iron Man suit and crouching down next to a small child, maybe six or seven, who was wearing a shirt so brightly white that it reflected the still flashing sky. A little closer and Stephen could see Tony had his mask off and was awkwardly patting the shoulder of the child, who was crying loudly.

Tony looked so comically out of his depth that Stephen almost smiled, but caught himself, not wanting to inadvertently upset the child more.

“Tony,” he said, keeping his voice calm and low. 

Tony looked up at him, incredibly relieved and again Stephen had to repress a grin. “Stephen, thank god you're here.”

Stephen just cocked his head, one eyebrow raised in a silent question.

“I’m afraid this girl might be hurt somehow. I was coming to help you, but on my way I spotted her standing in the middle of the street, watching the battle. I was worried she was gonna get hurt by something so I stopped to move her out of the way, but right then you made the monster explode and she just started screaming.

“I keep asking if she’s okay and what her name is, but she only cries harder. I don’t know what to do,” he finished, turning beseeching brown eyes on Stephen to great effect.

“Okay,” Stephen said with a feigned sigh. “Move out of the way and I’ll fix this.”

“Oh? So sure you can do better than me?” Tony demanded with mock indignation.

“Well, I do have a great bedside manner.”

“Who lied and told you that?”

Stephen hunkered down next to Tony so he could whisper in his ear. “You did last night, then again this morning, love. Now, move,” he said, gently bumping his shoulder into Tony’s.

Holding his hands up in mock surrender, Tony stood, his knees giving an audible pop as he did. “Fine, have it your way, Doctor Spock.” 

This time Stephen did allow the smile to show on his face as he turned his attention to the still crying girl, checked her over for any obvious injuries. Nothing presented itself, but Stephen noticed for the first time that the girl was holding her hands over her ears and not over her eyes, as he’d assumed. That and something indefinable about the girl’s sobs sparked an idea.

Playing on his hunch, Stephen reached out to gently tap the girl’s arm, and when her eyes flew open in panic, he met them evenly, still smiling, and brought his right hand up, and used it to make a clockwise circle over his chest.

_Sorry_ , he said in sign language.

The girl’s eyes widened and her cries cut off suddenly in a sad hiccup.

Encouraged, Stephen continued with a wave. _Hello, my name is-_

Here he stumbled. Normally he would spell out his name, but his hand couldn’t close to form the S. He tried several times, losing his smile as the effort made his stiff joints ache. Then the combination of his jerky movements and mounting emotions began to spill over into his magic, making sparks gather around his shaking hands. 

A glance at the girl showed the fear was creeping back into her expression, making Stephen’s frustration and the half-formed spells it caused worse.

A red gauntleted hand came to rest on his shoulder, finally stopping his own hands. Behind him Tony’s voice, low and soothing said, “Slow down, sweetheart. It’s okay.”

“But I can’t do this anymore. My hands-”

“It’s okay,” Tony repeated. “You can work around them, you do all the time. Just think through the problem.”

Stephen took a deep breath and did just that. He accepted that he wasn’t going to be able to make a fist, so signing his name was out of the question, but, with his mind working clearly again, he realized he didn’t have to. 

Making a loose C with his hand, Stephen brought it downwards across his chest, signing, _Strange. My name is Doctor Strange._

The girl lowered the hands covering her ears, and Stephen saw the thin tube of a hearing aid, confirming his theory even before she made a fist, index pointing up, then dipping down. _Really?_

_Yes, I’m very strange._

This time halfway through the movement for ‘strange’ he held out his pinkie and thumb, turning it into the sign for ‘silly,’ making her smile just a bit.

_Silly?_ she asked.

He nodded gravely, using his right hand to tap his left wrist twice. _Doctor Silly._

She grinned shyly, and Stephen winked at her before asking, _What is your name?_

The answer was a blur of letters and Stephen had to ask her to repeat it slower twice before he was sure he got it.

Not confident of his ability to spell it back, he said it outloud, “Isabella?” 

Isabella nodded.

At the same time Tony asked, “Isabella?”

Stephen blinked, surprised. In his concentration on the girl, he’d forgotten that Tony was still there with a hand on his shoulder.

“Yes,” he said. “Why don’t you come back down here a bit so she can see you and I’ll introduce you.”

When Tony knelt next to him, Isabella looked surprised. Stephen quickly signed, _Safe. This is my friend-_ he stopped again, knowing he wouldn’t be able to form a T and unsure what was the sign for iron.

Luckily, the girl provided it. _Iron Man!_ she motioned excitedly. Then, she said, “Iron Man!”

“Hi, Isabella,” Tony said, waving at her. “It is nice to meet you.”

Stephen translated for him, _He says hello and that it is nice to meet you._

“Nice to meet you too, Iron Man,” the girl said, carefully, signing the words as she said them.

“There’s a sign for Iron Man?” Tony asked, sounding delighted. 

The armor peeled back from Tony’s hands and he haltingly tried to mimic the gesture.

“No,” Isabella corrected him. “Like this.”

He got it right on the second try, proudly signing, _I am Iron Man!_

Stephen theatrically rolled his eyes, signing and saying, “You should’ve have showed him that. He already talks about himself too much.”

Tony said, “Hey!” and Isabella giggled.

Stephen grinned back at her. _Glad you are feeling better. Are you okay now? You were pretty upset when we got here._

She shook her no but at the same time signed, _Loud, loud noise._

_Yes, it was the-_ Stephen didn’t even know if there was a sign for ‘interdimensional creature’ so he settled for _-bad thing going away. Sorry the loud sound hurt you._

_It was so loud! And now my hearing aids don’t work. My mom is going to be mad._

_I don’t think she will. It wasn’t your fault._

_But they cost a lot of money. She told me to take good care of them because we couldn’t get another pair._

Behind him Stephen heard Tony, who no doubt had Friday translating for him, harrumph at that and was willing to bet that the girl would have new, better hearing aids by tomorrow morning.

To Isabella he signed, _Don’t worry about that now. Let’s just get you back to your mother. I’m sure she is worried._

She nodded, so he continued, _Where did you see her last?_

_I don’t know. We were going home, then there were lots of people shouting and pushing me and I couldn’t see her anymore._

_Do you know her phone number?_

Before Isabella could answer, Tony interrupted, “That’s not gonna help.”

Nodding up at the still twinkling sky, he continued, “The light show is causing electrical interference too. Cell service is down all over the city, and Friday says it will be a few hours before it clears up.”

“Shit,” Stephen sighed.

Isabella gasped, _You said a swear! I saw you!_

Stephen thought briefly about trying to lie, but decided against it. _Yes, I did, and I’m sorry. Iron Head back there was just telling the phones aren’t working._

“Oh,” she said, then signed, _Well, maybe she’s at home. We live close to here._

_Very good idea!_ Stephen replied. _We’ll go there next._

Stephen stood up, ignoring his own complaining knees as he did. _Do you want to walk, or would you like to fly?_

_Fly?!_ Isabella exclaimed, delighted shining through the tear tracks still smudging her face.

_Yes, but I’d have to pick you up. Would that be okay?_

She didn’t answer, just stepped closer to him with her arms outstretched, and Stephen was equal parts touched and terrified by her willingness to trust a complete stranger like him.

He swallowed back the lump in his throat and reach down to scoop her up. As he did the Cloak brushed against her side, wrapping its magic around her until she was feather light, allowing him to balance her easily on his hip. Isabella hooked her arms around his neck, looking around eagerly.

As soon as she was settled firmly in place, the Cloak lifted them up slowly until they were far enough off the ground to see around the debris. 

Next to them Tony lifted off too with considerably less poise and a lot more wind and noise, his suit built for speed and firepower, not for slow drifting. 

Stephen was sure the Cloak knew that too because it started forward at just the right pace to strain Tony’s auxiliary boosters, but not quite fast enough for him to switch to his main thrusters. His mask was down again, leaving Stephen to only imagine the annoyance on his face as his suit bobbed and wove as unsteadily as a tipsy duck in a wave pool.

Turning back to his small charge he waited until her wildly darting glaze fell on him for a moment to gesture one handed, _Look for your mother._

Isabella nodded in understanding, turning her face down to scan the road beneath them as they glided towards her address.

It was only a few minutes later that her grip on the back of the Cloak hand tightened, so she could point excitedly at a harried looking woman. “Silly! There!”

Without any direction from Stephen the Cloak descended, heading directly for the woman, and when they were only a few feet away, Isabella yelled, “Mom!”

The woman’s head jerked up. “Isabella!” she yelled back. “Thank god.”

Stephen’s feet were still a few inches off the ground as Isabella squirmed out of his arms and ran into her mom’s embrace, both of them crying.

Tony landed heavily beside him, and they stood together watching and feeling increasingly awkward as the two hugged, then traded signs, their hands moving too rapidly for Stephen to follow the conversation. 

Finally, Tony said, “So, looks like our job here is done. Should we leave? Do you think?”

Isabella’s mom looked up at hi words, and smiled sheepishly. She signed something and suddenly Isabella was running back over to them. 

She tackled Stephen, hugging him hard around the waist, before letting go to sign, _Thank you and Mr Iron Man. I was so scared, and I’m glad you were there to talk to._

Stephen signed, _I’m glad I met you today too._

“Tell her the same from me,” Tony said.

_And I’m sorry you had to meet him too,_ Stephen signed, with a grin and a nod at Tony.

Tony kicked him lightly, and uncertainty made a throwing away motion with his hand. _Ignore Doctor Silly. I’m happy we met._

“Me too,” Isabella replied.

_And I’m sorry my hands couldn’t make the signs right,_ Stephen motioned, looking down in embarrassment.

The child grinned at him, and signed and said, “That's okay. People say I don’t talk right too, but what is important is that we are trying our best.”

Behind her, Isabella’s mother nodded in agreement. “That’s right. All we can do is try our best.” 

“Stephen certainly is very trying,” Tony added wryly.

Stephen rolled his eyes at that, declining to translate for Isabella. Instead he signed, _Thank you. That is nice of you to say and very smart._

“That she is,” her mother said, beaming. Then she tapped Isabella’s shoulder, signing, _Now we should go home and let the nice men get back to work._

Isabella nodded, giving Stephen and Tony each a hug before turning to leave with a final wave. Her mom nodded at them, and, moving her flat hand away from her lips, she added her own silence thanks before taking Isabella’s hand and starting home.

Stephen watched them go until they disappeared into the chaos of the street, until Tony broke into his reverie.

“Well, lots of people still to help, Doctor Silly,” he said, his eyes sparkling.

Stephen didn’t rise to the bait, knowing that would only encourage Tony to hang on to the nickname longer. He just shook his head and pushed lightly off the pavement and back into the air, already looking for anyone else in trouble.

And if he silently urged the Cloak to go even slower to annoy Tony, well, nobody could prove anything.


End file.
